Officials from the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) reportedly surrounded the residence of Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, a former Deputy Minister and Member of Parliament for Assin South, in what the opposition has condemned as a politically motivated attempt to arrest him.
The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Justin Kodua Frimpong, sounded the alarm in a social media post on Tuesday, April 9, describing the development as a troubling sign of increasing state-sponsored harassment of opposition voices.
Using the hashtag #SayNoToStateIntimidation, Kodua accused the government of targeting Rev. Fordjour for raising red flags about alleged illicit activity at the country’s main airport.
The incident comes just days after Rev. Fordjour made controversial claims about two suspicious flights that reportedly landed at the Kotoka International Airport under what he described as “shady circumstances,” suggesting possible links to drug trafficking and money laundering.
His allegations triggered a political firestorm, with government officials quickly dismissing the accusations as unfounded and lacking evidence. However, Tuesday’s reported siege has deepened fears within the opposition that the government is using state security apparatus to silence dissent.
The NIB has yet to issue an official statement addressing the incident or clarifying the reasons behind the attempted arrest.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour, who once served as Deputy Minister of Education, is known for his outspoken views on governance and national security. His recent claims have sparked debate over transparency at Ghana’s ports of entry and raised questions about how whistleblowers are treated in the current political climate.
The NPP has vowed to resist what it views as a pattern of intimidation targeting its members and has called on civil society and the international community to take note of what it sees as a dangerous erosion of democratic freedoms in Ghana.
